ITUC Calls on Kazakhstan Government to Respect Freedom of Association

12 December 2016: The ITUC has called on the government of Kazakhstan to respect the rights of workers in the country to form and join trade unions of their choice, in line with international law, following a series of government interventions to deregister the CNTUK national centre which recently affiliated to the ITUC, and to stop individual unions from obtaining registration.

In its letter to the government, the ITUC points to a case taken by the government to the national economic court to remove the registration of the CNTUK, as well as administrative obstacles to many unions which have sought registration.

Sharan Burrow, ITUC General Secretary, said: “Kazakhstan has ratified ILO Convention 87 on Freedom of Association. Under that Convention, it is legally obliged to allow unions to operate without this kind of administrative interference and allow workers the freedom to form and join unions. We call on the government to fulfil these obligations without further delay.”